Completing the FAFSA® form is the first step to obtaining federal student aid to pay for your college or career school. Follow these eight simple steps for FAFSA filing to set your student up for success and submit the form on time.
Step 1-Create an FSA ID.
- Student: An FSA ID is your account username and password. You need it to sign the FAFSA form online. If you don’t have an FSA ID, you can create an FSA ID online to complete federal student aid tasks. It takes about 10 minutes to create an FSA ID.
- Parent: If you are the parent, you need to create your own FSA ID to sign your child’s FAFSA form online. Create an FSA ID . As a parent, you’ll be able to use your FSA ID right away.
Step 2-Start the FAFSA® form at fafsa.gov.
The form is available Oct. 1! Even if your state and school deadlines aren’t for a while, you should complete the FAFSA form as soon as possible. Some states and schools run out of financial aid early and have limited funds. So, don’t wait until the last minute to apply!
- If you are the student, select “I am a student and want to access the FAFSA form.” Then, log in using your FSA ID.
- If you are the parent, select “I am a parent filling out a FAFSA form for a student.” After selecting the parent role, you will need to provide your child’s name, their date of birth, and their Social Security number.
Create a save key
- Unlike the FSA ID, you can share the save key. A save key is a temporary password that allows you and your parent(s) to “pass” the FAFSA form back and forth. It also allows you to save the FAFSA form and return to it later. The key is especially helpful if you and your parent are not in the same place.
Remember, the FAFSA form is not a “one-and-done” event. You must complete a FAFSA form each school year.
Step 3-Fill out the Student Demographics section.
The Student Demographics section includes your name, date of birth, etc. If you either completed the FAFSA form in the past or logged into the FAFSA form with your FSA ID, most of your personal information will prepopulate to save you time. Make sure you enter your personal information exactly as it appears on your Social Security card. (That’s right, no nicknames.)
Parents:
Remember that the FAFSA form is the student’s application and not yours. When the FAFSA form says “you” or “your,” it’s referring to the student (unless otherwise noted). Pay attention to whether you’re asked to provide student or parent information.
Step 4-List the schools that will receive your FAFSA® information.
In the School Selection section, add every school you’re considering, even if you haven’t sent your application or received an acceptance letter. It doesn’t hurt your application to add more schools. School officials can’t see the other schools.
In fact, you don’t even have to remove schools if you later decide not to apply or attend. If you don’t end up applying or getting accepted to a school, the school can just disregard your FAFSA form. However, you can remove schools at any time to make room for new schools. You can add up to 10 schools at a time. If you’re applying to more than 10 schools, you have a few options.
Step 5-Answer the dependency status questions.
In the dependency status section, you’ll need to respond to a series of specific questions that determine whether you need to provide parent information on the FAFSA form.
The U.S. Congress sets the dependency guidelines. They are different from the guidelines the IRS uses. Even if you live on your own, support yourself, and file taxes on your own, you may still be considered a dependent student for federal student aid purposes. If you are a dependent student, you’ll need to report information about your parent(s). If you are an independent student, you won’t have to provide parent information, and you can skip the next step. Learn about these dependency status questions and whether you’re a dependent or independent student.
Step 6-Fill out the Parent Demographics section.
Parents will need to provide basic demographic information. Remember, it doesn’t matter if your student doesn’t live with you; they still must report information about you if they are a dependent student.
Start by figuring out who counts as the parent on the FAFSA form.
Determine who takes the parent role in the FAFSA form using this graphic in yesterday’s post.
We have a specific guidance you can read about reporting your parents’ information as a dependent student and what to do if you are not able to provide parent information due to special circumstances.
Step 7-Provide your financial information.
This step is incredibly simple if you use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT). The IRS DRT allows you to import your IRS tax information into the FAFSA form with just a few clicks. Also, using this tool may reduce the amount of paperwork you need to provide to your school. So, make sure to use it, if you’re eligible.
You can easily transfer your tax information into your FAFSA form using the IRS DRT.
Once you have indicated that you have completed your taxes, you may be eligible to use the IRS DRT. If so, select the button to link to the IRS and follow the prompts.
Link to the IRS DRT to easily incorporate your income tax information into the FAFSA® form.
Step 8-Sign and submit your FAFSA form.
You’re not finished with the FAFSA form until you (and your parent, if you’re a dependent student) sign the form. The quickest and easiest way to sign your FAFSA form is online with your FSA ID.
Sign and Submit Tips:
- If you or your student forgot your FSA ID, you can retrieve the account username and password.
- Make sure you and your student don’t mix up your FSA IDs. This is one of the most common errors we see. This mistake is why it’s extremely important for each person to create his or her own FSA ID and not share it with anyone.
- Make sure the parent who is using his or her FSA ID to sign the FAFSA form chooses the right parent choice from the options.
- Here’s what you should do if you get an error saying that your FSA ID information doesn’t match the information provided on the FAFSA form.
- If you have other siblings, you can use the same FSA ID to sign FAFSA forms for each child. Your parent can also transfer his or her information into your sibling’s application by choosing the option provided on the FAFSA confirmation page.
The FAFSA® form allows you to continue with state applications or for your parents to complete it for multiple children.
- We recommend signing the FAFSA form with an FSA ID because it’s the fastest way to get your FAFSA form processed. However, if you are unable to sign the FAFSA form electronically with an FSA ID, you can mail in a signature page. From the “Sign and Submit” page, select “Other options to sign and submit” and then choose “Print a Signature Page.” Just keep in mind that your FAFSA form will take longer to process if you go this route.
*Information for this article was taken directly from the StudentAid.gov website*